1. Field of the Invention
Embodiments of the present invention generally relate to the identification of integrated circuit chip(s) by means of a number which differentiates one chip from another with a degree of reproduction of the numbers.
Embodiments of the present invention more specifically relate to a deterministic determination of an identifier (identification number), that is, a voluntary generation of a selected number.
2. Discussion of the Related Art
Known methods for generating in deterministic fashion an integrated circuit chip identifier generally use a non-volatile memory of the circuit and store one number per writing into this memory.
This writing typically requires a specific step, be it on manufacturing (mask for writing into a ROM) or after manufacturing (electric or optical write process).
Furthermore, the storage of the identification number typically requires a memory area internal to the integrated circuit chip which takes up space.